The Monkey: Test Shots

During our first night of filming, we utilized test shots to plan out the staging and camera movement in select scenes.
In the first shot, in which the camera slowly moves in on Ethan's window, I had to demonstrate what I was looking for in the shot to our cameraman, Liam. I used my iPhone to show him the angle and camera movement I wanted, and the final shot turned out perfect.

In the next couple shots, the camera was stationary, so instead of videos, I took pictures of the specific angles I wanted so that Liam could shoot the film how we wanted. Once again, the test shots helped us in framing and communicating our ideas to our cameraman.

After my character was no longer in the scene, I took over the camera work. For the shot of Ethan walking down the hallway, I took a couple test videos to get the angle and the positioning just right so that the camera could capture what was going on through the gap in the doors. Once perfected, we filmed the shot, to satisfying results.

We utilized a test shot once again when filming the shot where Ethan opens the closet. To demonstrate what I wanted out of the shot, I set up the camera where I wanted it and utilized the front facing camera of the iPhone so I could see what the camera was shooting. After hitting record, I closed the closet door and showed Ethan how the scene should look. I played it back for him once we finished the test shot so he could practice his acting in the shot.

Overall, the use of test shots in our production process was incredibly helpful in communicating and refining ideas with our cast and crew.